With the EU strategic framework for health and safety at work expiring in 2020, the first discussions on a new strategy will take place today at the European Employment, Social Affairs, Health and Consumer Affairs Council. Ministers from the EU member states are expected to adopt conclusions on a new EU strategic framework on health and safety at work, inviting the European Commission to present a new strategic framework for 2021-2027.

The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) together with the European Consumers Organisation (BEUC) and the European Environmental Bureau (EEB) have come together to call on the Commission to build a Europe that protects people and ecosystems against chemical pollution.

Climate change is creating and exacerbating risks to workers, the ETUC warned delegates at the United Nation’s climate change conference (COP) today. On the second day of the event in Madrid, the ETUC held a joint side event with the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung to highlight the consequences of climate change for the world of work.

Dear Readers, We have just published the November 2019 edition of the ETUC newsletter. To read the document, please click here. Enjoy!

On 28 November 2019, several organisations, including the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), extended the EU Roadmap on Carcinogens in Helsinki. The objective of this voluntary action scheme is to raise awareness amongst workers and employers about the risks of exposure to carcinogens.

Speech OPZZ 35th Anniversary Gala Luca Visentini   A warm thank you for inviting me to this important anniversary in the history of OPZZ. I take this opportunity to extend to you the congratulations of the whole ETUC. OPZZ is an important member of the ETUC, and the European movement has benefited enormously from the input of your trade union. Since Poland joined the European Union, you have made sure that the voice of workers from Central and Eastern European member states was well heard in the trade union movement.

Responding to the European Parliament’s approval for the new European Commission, ETUC General Secretary Luca Visentini said: “The process of forming the new Commission has been beset by problems from the moment that lead candidates in the European elections were disregarded as potential presidents. "Now the Commission has finally got over the line, it’s time to get on with delivering the big promises it has made for its first 100 days.

The European Commission today presented its opinion on the draft budgets of Eurozone countries. Please find below a comment from European Trade Union Confederation General Secretary Luca Visentini: 

The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) welcomes the decision by the European Investment Bank (EIB) to phase out lending to fossil fuel projects – and stresses that affected workers and regions must be properly supported. The board of the European Investment Bank (EIB) has announced that the institution will phase out lending for almost all fossil-fuel projects after 2021.

Dear Presidents, Ministers, Colleagues from the social partners. I do not like to be a pessimist, but the situation is grim. The global and European economic forecasts have been revised downwards. Inflation is still very low, despite all the efforts made by the ECB. We had finally started to have some breathing space as we were recovering from the 2008/2012 crisis. Now the growth prospects are reported to be weaker than last year. Also looking at the employment figures and claiming all is positive would be misleading.

Commenting on today's European Commission Autumn Economic Forecast, ETUC General Secretary Luca Visentini said: “The Commission’s economic forecast shows Europe rests on the edge of another recession despite the fact that workers’ living standards still haven’t recovered from the last financial crisis. Even the good overall employment rate is based on a rise in precarious work.

Dear Readers, We have just published the October 2019 edition of the ETUC newsletter. To read the document, please click here. Enjoy!

Parents in seven EU member states will begin benefiting from new rights to paid leave if national governments properly implement the work-life balance directive, a new ETUC analysis shows. Fathers in Italy, Croatia and Slovakia are set to receive paid paternity leave around the birth of a child for the first time ever under the directive adopted by the European Council in June. The legislation fought for by the ETUC will also at least double the length of paid paternity leave in the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Portugal and Romania.